Business this week

The natural disasters that hit Japan on March 11th continued to have an impact on supply chains, especially for carmakers. Many factories that produce components remain either shut or damaged, causing a problem for manufacturers that rely on just-in-time delivery of parts. Honda, for example, temporarily reduced production at its North American factories and said it would review the situation based on the availability of car parts. See article

Ros-nyet

A proposed share swap and plan to combine energy exploration in the Arctic between BP and Russia's Rosneft was dealt a blow when an arbitration panel decided to extend an interim injunction on the deal. The injunction was imposed in February after Russian shareholders in another BP venture, TNK-BP, argued that they should be given first refusal on any new BP project in Russia. The arbitration panel's decision is a particular setback for Bob Dudley, BP's chief executive, who used to be in charge of TNK-BP. See article

The North Sea oil industry kept up its complaints about a £2 billion ($3.4 billion) levy outlined in the recent British budget, which pays for a cut in petrol duty. Norway's Statoil postponed new investment it had planned for two North Sea oilfields, saying that the tax “significantly impacts the economics” of the projects.

GE continued its spending spree in the energy business by agreeing to buy most of Converteam, which specialises in electrical-power systems, for $3.2 billion.

A class-action lawsuit which began in 2001 and alleges that Walmart pays its female workers less than male staff in equivalent jobs reached the Supreme Court. Up to 1.5m women could benefit from punitive damages if the six original plaintiffs win their case. The question before the court is not whether Walmart discriminated against the women, but if the class-action claim can cover so many people. The judges will decide by July if the case can proceed.

David Sokol, hitherto seen as a possible successor to Warren Buffett as boss of Berkshire Hathaway, resigned from the company to manage his family's money. His departure was overshadowed by revelations about his dealings in shares of Lubrizol ahead of Berkshire's $9.7 billion proposed takeover of the company. See article

Still in recession

There was more dismal news from America's housing market, as the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index for 20 cities fell by 3.1% in the three months to January from the same period in 2010. S&P said none of the data pointed to “any form of sustained recovery”. Meanwhile, Republicans in Congress voted to end the Home Affordable Modification Programme, which helps homeowners avoid foreclosure. The White House has said it will veto the move.

Valeant, a Canadian drug company, made a $5.7 billion hostile offer for Cephalon, a smaller American rival, and gave notice it wanted its own people to sit on Cephalon's board. Valeant is financing its bid entirely with debt. Takeovers among drug companies may become more contested as patents expire and they seek growth through acquisitions.

Mukesh Ambani, the richest man in India, set up a joint venture with an American hedge fund to enter India's financial-services industry. This comes less than a year after he and his brother, Anil, scrapped their contentious “non-compete” compact under which assets from their late father's Reliance empire were split.

Choosing one's friends

Google agreed to settle charges brought by America's Federal Trade Commission that it had used “deceptive tactics” and “violated its own privacy promises” when it set up Google Buzz last year. Google received thousands of complaints when it launched its social network from users whose e-mail contacts were shared publicly. The FTC instructed Google to implement a privacy programme to protect consumers' information, the first time it has issued such an order, and said Google would be subject to privacy audits for the next 20 years.

Amazon presented a service that enables users to buy and store music in the online cloud and access their tunes from any computer or mobile device that works on the Android operating system, but not Apple's iPod or iPad. Amazon launched Cloud Drive without licensing agreements with some music companies; Sony Music said it was “disappointed”. Apple and Google hope to introduce their own cloud-storage services soon. See article

Lenovo, China's biggest computer-maker, entered the tablet market by unveiling the LePad. The device has a 10.1-inch (26cm) screen, similar in size to the iPad's, and operates on Android. The LePad is only available in China for now.